Gary W. Sergent serves as Director-Conferences & Symposiums within the Office of Executive Programs at University of Georgia’s Terry College of Business. In his role, Gary collaborates with administrators, faculty, and staff to provide leadership and professional development programs around strategy, change management, and Lean Six Sigma certifications. Gary also leads two volunteer advisory boards to provide quarterly CFO Roundtable programs for senior leaders across Atlanta’s finance community and Trucking Profitability Strategies Conference for C-Suite executives across North America.

Gary earned a Master of Business Administration from University of Phoenix and Bachelor Business Administration-Finance from Georgia State University. He is also certified as a Lean Six Sigma Green Belt. Gary resides in Athens, Georgia with his husband and life partner Shelly. 

Served in senior student affairs role at several law schools, including Georgia State University and St. John’s University, responsible for academic matters, professional development, student discipline, orientation, disability services, financial aid advising, as well as student organization advisement and leadership development. She was also previously served as the Dean of Students and chief conduct officer at Nova Southeastern University. She is on the Advisory Board for the Georgia Latino Law Foundation, as well as Committee on Virtual Programming for the National Association of College and University Attorneys. She previously served on the Executive Committee of the Student Services Section for the Association of American Law Schools and served as the Chair of the 2021 National Leadership Conference for Omicron Delta Kappa, the National Leadership Honor Society. Alexis has a B.B.A, JD, and M.S.Ed. from the University of Miami, and an Ed.D. from Peabody College at Vanderbilt University.

Carly Bloomingdale has worked in Georgia Tech Student Center Programs for over 8 years in several roles. She currently serves as the Director of Programs for the Georgia Tech Student and Campus Event Centers. Prior to working at Georgia Tech, Carly worked in student housing at University of Arizona, Bowling Green State University, and with the off-campus private housing company, EdR Trust. Planning student events to help students find community outside of their classroom has always been the best part of her roles in higher education. Carly currently leads the team that plans and advises SCPC and graduate student events. She manages Tech Rec, Paper & Clay, Campus Tickets, Graduate Lounge, Multicultural Programs Lounge, and the Reflection Space in the new John Lewis Student Center and Stamps Commons. Carly earned her B.A in Advertising at Ball State University and her M.A. in Higher Education Administration from University of Arizona.

Sheretha brings more than 20 years of marketing experience with a customer-centric approach to business success. She will speak on how to bring fresh concepts through marketing, advertising, content development social media, copywriting, and media/community relations.

Michael Kloss, CSEP is an award-winning Certified Special Event Professional, author, and event-planning instructor for more than 20 years. Special Events Magazine's “Organizational Event Planner-of-the-Year” in 2012, Michael brings his passion for event technology, storytelling, experiential design, and Disney-inspired guest relations to each event he produces. He serves as the Assistant Vice President for Emory Events and Chief Protocol Officer at Emory University. Prior to Emory, Michael served as Executive Director of University Events for the University of Southern California. Select event awards include the International Live Events Association (ILEA) ESPRIT award for “Best Original Entertainment” for an original Cirque du Soleil-style gala performance, the 2021 ILEA ESPRIT Award for “Best Industry Contribution” for his book “Five Days with the Mouse to be a Better Event Planner,” the Grand Gold Award from the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) for events with His Holiness the Dalai Lama, and the 2022 CASE Gold Award for multi-day 2O36 Campaign Launch events at Emory and across the country.